Woodland Strings Up Forsyth Central, 39-13

Two late scores—one on the final play of the game—did little to temper ’s dominance of Forsyth Central Friday night as the Wildcats celebrated a 39-13 homecoming win in 7-AAAA action.

Woodland (3-2) jumped to a 39-0 lead behind a menacing defense whose starters allowed the Bulldogs only 78 yards of offense. By contrast, the Wildcats rolled up more than 400 yards.

“We told the players it was their game tonight,” said head coach Vince DiLorenzo. “I felt like we had a good plan but, heck, [the players] had to come through.

“In the first half we did everything. Offense played well; defense played well. We covered well on the kicking game.”

Sophomore Qua Stocks found his way into the end zone for three scores—two receiving and one on the ground.

“We had our backs against the wall and had to make a push in this game,” he said. “My O-line blocked great for me. We had a hard week at practice and fixed what we did wrong [against Johns Creek]. When I was able to find an open area in the field [quarterback] R.J. [Williams] got me the ball.”

Woodland wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. After forcing Forsyth Central to punt on the opening possession, the Wildcats began at midfield and proceeded to march to the five-yard line where Cambrell Turner ran in for the first touchdown of the night. The extra point attempt was no good but with 5:40 left in the first quarter, Woodland led 6-0.

The big night for Stocks began on the Wildcats’ next drive. After holding the Bulldogs to another three-and-out, Williams was dropped for a one-yard loss before Stocks went 40 yards over the right side down to the Forsyth Central 19. Two plays later, Williams ran in from 16 yards for a 13-0 lead after Will Broome’s kick.

On its third possession of the night, Woodland went ahead 19-0 after Stocks’ 11-yard score early in the second quarter.

The Wildcats’ final score of the first half was set up after senior Jabari Carrion blocked a Bulldog punt, putting Woodland deep in Bulldog territory. Two plays later Turner went up the middle and cut right from 11 yards out, making the halftime score 26-0 after Broome’s extra point.

A stout Woodland defense held Forsyth Central to three plays (excluding punts) on its first three possessions, with one 10-play drive in the second quarter netting only 20 yards.

“Tonight was some of the best defense we’ve played all year,” said defensive coordinator Jeff Bullen. “Things just clicked. We played good assignment football and hit well. I was real proud of how they played.”

“We prepared hard all week for this game and just got after it,” said defensive end Chandler Royal, who made an evening of camping out in the Bulldog backfield. “We couldn’t let two [losses] get us down.

Coming out of the locker room to open the third quarter, Woodland received the ball and went to work in a hurry. Turner’s 18-yard rumble up the middle and another by Twan Terrell were aided greatly by Williams’ peppering the ball around the field. The nine-play, 76-yard drive took just over six minutes and finished with Stocks’ 11-yard grab, bringing the score to 33-0 after Broome’s kick.

“We wanted to play the first five minutes [of the second half] like it was the first five minutes of the game,” said DiLorenzo. “That says so much about a football team when they’re able to do that, especially with that lead.”

After forcing Forsyth Central to turn the ball over on downs, the Wildcats reeled off 12 plays in going 69 yards for their final score. Stocks took a quick out pass from Williams before shedding two would-be tacklers and trotting into the end zone, stretching Woodland’s advantage to 39-0 following Broome’s kick.

The Bulldogs got on the scoreboard on its next drive as wideout Duncan Birch slipped past a Wildcat defender and raced 76 yards down the right sideline to make the score 39-7. On the visitors’ final drive Jordan Schauller ran in for a six-yard score as time expired.

Woodland is off next week. On Oct. 7, the Wildcats host defending AAAA state champion Chattahoochee.

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